


Something Beautiful

by Estrella3791



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alcohol Abuse, Because of a crazy turn of events that I won't go into detail about, F/M, I don't know if they have an official name, Loki is a good guy, Mentions of Violence, Reader has electricity-controlling powers, They're pretty cool either way, Tony Stark is a strange guy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-22
Updated: 2017-06-22
Packaged: 2018-11-17 04:23:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,952
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11267865
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Estrella3791/pseuds/Estrella3791
Summary: After the Reader blames herself for an injury to a civilian, it's up to Loki to convince her that it's not her fault.





	Something Beautiful

**Author's Note:**

> Hey!
> 
> To any of you who may have been looking for an update to The Jarvis: I am sorry. This just kind of happened, and I thought I might as well post it.
> 
> To everyone: I hope that you enjoy this! When I say that it just kind of happened, I mean exactly that. There was no thought or editing or anything given to this. Just wanted to say that.
> 
> Also, just so you know, I have never been drunk or experienced PTSD, so my portrayal of both of those things in this are probably very unrealistic. I apologize for that, and I meant no offense to anyone.
> 
>  
> 
> Enjoy!!!

Tony Stark rolled his eyes at the screen.

 

“How unrealistic can you get?” he asked the room at large. 

 

“In all honesty, boss, probably a lot more than that,” FRIDAY replied. Tony rolled his eyes again, this time at FRIDAY. 

 

It was ten in the evening on a Saturday night, and Tony was, for once, taking the night off. He’d retreated to the living room, with an armful of snacks and even more sci-fi movies. However, this far he was sorely disappointed with the filmmakers. Honestly, could the special effects _really _be that bad in this day and age?__

__

__Another building exploded. Apparently the answer was yes._ _

__

__Tony leaned back against the couch and stuffed another handful of popcorn in his mouth, letting out a sigh as he did so. It had been a long day, which was probably why he was sitting here watching stupid movies instead of in the lab tinkering. For once in his life, Tony was a little afraid of messing up._ _

__

__He had done so earlier._ _

__

__The whole team had been there, which goes to show what a frightening threat they’d been facing. There had been a combined terrorist attack on New York. The good news was that it was a short commute. The bad news was that it was _intense _. Tony couldn’t even remember how many bombs he’d defused, most of them freaking _nuclear _. And then there had been the one that he hadn’t gotten neutralized in time. In fact, he’d set it off early. And there had still been civilians in the building. The thought made him reach for his glass of Scotch and down half of it in one go._____ _

______ _ _ _ _

______Thankfully, (Y/N), Thor, and Loki had been in the building. If they hadn’t gotten the people out in time… He finished off the other half of the alcohol. Thank goodness for working comms._ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______His attention was captured by yet another explosion on the screen, and this one was so unbelievable that he chuckled. (Does it make sense that he was watching violent movies when what had him so worked up was an exploding building? No. It doesn’t. But he’s Tony Stark, which means that all of you at the Avengers compound had learned to just let him do his thing and not ask questions.)_ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______“Pause that, FRIDAY,” he said, setting his glass back down on the table. “I want to show that to (Y/N).”_ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______The movie paused._ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______“(Y/N) is not in the compound,” the AI informed him._ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______“What?” Tony asked, feeling confused. “Where is she?”_ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______“I don’t know,” FRIDAY said. “She didn’t tell me or anyone else.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______Tony entertained the thought of being worried about you for around five seconds, and then he dismissed it. You were fully capable of taking care of yourself. So he stuffed a handful of chips in his mouth, flipped himself around so that he was lying upside down on the couch, and unpaused his movie._ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______Five hours later, he was starting to slow down, and, for once, was thinking about actually going to bed. He’d finished his snacks and made a serious dent in his movies, and it just made sense. But before he could finish making his decision, the door slid open, and you staggered into the room._ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______As a professional in alcohol, Tony could tell that you were smashed. Not that it was really that hard to see. It was written pretty clearly in the glazed over eyes and the smeared makeup. For an awesome superhero, you couldn’t hold your liquor. At _all _. And that was on a good night, when someone was watching your intake. You’d apparently been out, drinking heavily, for who knows how long, and it was taking its toll. He stood up, feeling a little disappointed in both you for being so irresponsible and himself for not coming after you.___ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Oh, gosh, (Y/N),” he muttered, standing up from the couch. “What did you do?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________He made his way to your side and put a tentative hand on your arm. You didn’t scream at him or hit him with a one of your (frankly quite terrifying) energy blasts, so he figured that he was doing okay and led you over to the couch. He racked his brain for something to say. Turned out that starting conversations with drunk people was much harder when he was not also drunk._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“So why’d you go out?” he asked you eventually._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________You just looked at him blankly, unblinking. He wondered what to say to get you to talk, and then he had a stroke of genius._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________\  
“FRIDAY,” he said, not taking his eyes off of you, “Get Loki to come down here? Tell him it’s about (Y/N).”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________The elevator dinged within five minutes, and Loki came rushing down the hall, looking… dared Tony say it… yes, he did, because he was a Stark… panicked._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“What is wrong? Has she been injured? Did she have a nightmare? Is…”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________He trailed off when he realized that you were totally hammered. Tony gave him an apologetic smile._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Sorry to wake you up like that,” he said, “but, as you can see, High Voltage here had a bit too much, and she’s not talking to me. Why don’t you see if you can get somewhere with her?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Loki didn’t even answer. (He’d never really gotten over being denied his drink after the whole Battle of New York.) He shoved Tony off the couch and sat down, keeping his eyes on you the whole time._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“(Y/N)? What’s wrong?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________It wasn’t at all like you to go out drinking like that. You were responsible and mature, and usually ended up being the designated driver. Loki quite liked that about you. (If we’re honest, he liked everything about you.) So the fact that you had broken your five-year streak of not getting drunk meant that something was very, very wrong._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Your answer was to bury your face in your hands and burst into tears. Loki’s eyes widened in alarm._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Good job,” Tony snarked, starting towards you, and Loki shoved him to the side with no regret whatsoever. The billionaire thought about fighting back but decided to call it a day and left the room._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“(Y/N)?” Loki whispered, leaning towards you. “Are you all right, love?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

_________Oops _. He called you ‘love.’ That had been an accident. Goodness knows that he’d have loved to call you that every day of his life, but he hadn’t until now. Now, when you were intoxicated and crying. Brilliant.__ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“I… I…” you sobbed, seemingly unable to say anything else._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Well, this was progress. At least you were trying._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“Yes?” Loki asked patiently._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“I’m s-sorry,” you hiccupped, and that was enough to break the ‘no physical contact’ rule that Loki had installed in his brain when he first met you. He wrapped his arms around you and pulled you close, stroking your hair._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“Shh,” he soothed you as you cried into his shoulder. “It’s all right. You’re all right. You’ve done nothing wrong.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“But I did!” you wailed. Loki straightened up. Now he was getting somewhere._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“I… that little girl…” you faltered. “She wa-was so s-scared. I tried to get her out but she g-got hit with the blast and s-she looked at me…”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________You broke down in tears again, and Loki’s heart ached for you._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“She’s all right,” he reminded you. “We got her to the hospital, and she’s going to be all right. The doctors said she’d probably wake up within the week, remember? The family thanked you.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“But I don’t deserve it!” you whimpered. “If I had just been quicker…”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“Stop that!” he said firmly, and it was enough to make you stop crying and listen to him. “You couldn’t have done anything. It wasn’t your fault.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“But…” you began._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“Do you blame Stark for not being able to defuse the explosive in time?” he asked you. You were taken aback._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“Of course not!” you said vehemently. “Do you?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“No,” Loki said, “Just like I don’t blame you.” The comparison seemed to make you stop and think, and he takes the opportunity to lean back so that he can look in your eyes. “(Y/N),” he repeated, “No one blames you. It wasn’t your fault.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________You started to cry again, but he could tell that this time it was more out of relief than guilt. He pulled you close again and rested his cheek against your hair, closing his eyes and breathing in the scent of your shampoo. You clung to him, calming yourself with the tangible assurance that he was there and that he didn’t blame you. By the time you could breathe again, you’d pulled away, and were leaning your head back against the edge of the couch with your eyes closed and your head clearer than it had been since that morning._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Since your mind was completely your own again, you toyed with the notion of mentioning your growing feelings to Loki, and then decided that that was a terrible idea. He’d never feel the same about you, especially after your stupid drinking spree. He probably hated you, and he couldn’t wait to get out of there, and…_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Loki saw your eyes filling with tears, and he started to panic again._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“What happened? Did I do something?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________You wordlessly shook your head, biting down on your fist to keep yourself from sobbing, and Loki couldn’t handle it any more._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“You’re wonderful, (Y/N). Did you know that?” You shook your head. “I thought as much. You’re so wonderful that I can’t even breathe sometimes, and you can’t even see it. You’re beautiful, too.” Now your eyes were wide, and if he’d noticed he would have stopped immediately, feeling self conscious, but he didn’t notice because he was studying the floor at the moment. So he kept going. “Your hair, and your eyes, and your skin… You probably don’t see that, either, do you? And you’re so kind. To everybody. Remember that terrible man that you saved from a burning building? He wouldn’t even look at you, but you just told him that you were glad he was safe and walked away. You’re so tenderhearted, and it’s one of the many things that I love about…”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________He trailed off, probably realizing what he just said, as you stared at him, hardly able to believe what you’d just heard. He blushed furiously, and was about to apologize for rambling like that when your voice cut him off._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“You… love…? Really?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________He swallowed hard and nodded, cheeks flaming._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________You leaned in close, and whispered, “Me, too.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________There were five seconds of complete stillness in which both of you stared at the other in disbelief, and then he leaned down and you reached up and your lips met, and your mind went blank. He kissed you softly, gently, as if he were afraid you might run away if he pressed too hard, and you carefully followed his lead. It was a pure and innocent and breathtakingly beautiful kiss, and when he finally broke it you were both smiling._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“You, too?” he asked you softly, and you smiled, closing your eyes and leaning in again._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Just before your mouth reached his you whispered, “Me, too.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________When Tony walked in the next morning and found you two asleep on the couch together, he smiled to himself. You were lying with your head in Loki’s lap, snoring softly. His head was resting on the back of the couch as he snored a little less quietly, and his hand was tangled in your hair. It was nice, Tony thought as he tiptoed out of the room, to know that sometimes mistakes can bring about something beautiful_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

**Author's Note:**

> *happy sigh*
> 
> I love the thought of Loki being a good guy. Watching Thor just kind of kills me, because I know what happens to that innocent little boy. Gah! The feels!
> 
> Thank you for reading!


End file.
